Books on Film: From the Vault: Tomi Ungerer

One of my favorite parts about writing this blog is when I can share something unique. Makes me feel like I’m doing my job. I’ve been a fan of Tomi Ungerer since I became a school librarian a little over a decade ago¹, but it’s hard to find video of the guy. Today we have a great Weston Woods video of Ungerer in 1981. A video that refers to Ungerer as “saucy” and “spicy” within the first minute and contains more memorable quotes than I care to write. Basically, if you want to hear someone talk about children’s books in a way no one else talks about them (including the occasional off-putting comment), this video is for you.

¹But I didn’t know of the guy when I was a kid. I think it’s because my childhood fell in that weird zone where Ungerer was basically blackballed by American librarians because of his risqué work for grown-ups. This is covered in the Ungerer documentary Far Out Is Not Far Enough.

Travis Jonker is an elementary school librarian in Michigan. He writes reviews (and the occasional article or two) for School Library Journal and is a member of the 2014 Caldecott committee. You can email Travis at scopenotes@gmail.com, or follow him on Twitter: @100scopenotes.

About 100 Scope Notes

Children's literature news, reviews and assorted school librarian oddities. Combine one part kid's books, one part school librarianship, a splash of absurdity and you get 100 Scope Notes.

Travis Jonker is an elementary school librarian in Michigan. He writes reviews (and the occasional article or two) for School Library Journal and is a member of the 2014 Caldecott committee. You can email Travis at scopenotes@gmail.com. He's also on...